Oslo Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum

Location	Sentrum, Oslo
Coordinates	59°54′46.6″N 10°45′16.7″E / 59.912944°N 10.754639°E / 59.912944; 10.754639Coordinates: 59°54′46.6″N 10°45′16.7″E / 59.912944°N 10.754639°E / 59.912944; 10.754639
Public transit	Metro: Jernbanetorget stasjon (     ) Tram: Jernbanetorget stasjon (      ) Bus: Oslo Bus Terminal Train: Oslo S
Owner	Norges Varemesse
Operator	Norges Varemesse
Capacity	6,500 (sport) 9,700 (concerts) 11,000 (max)
Construction
Opened	December 1990
Architect	LPO Arkitektkontor AS
Tenants
Eurovision Song Contest 1996 Vålerenga (Eliteserien) (1990–1993) Spektrum Flyers (Eliteserien) (1994–1996)

Oslo Spektrum is an indoor multi-purpose arena in east central Oslo, Norway. It opened in December 1990. It is currently owned and operated by Norges Varemesse. Oslo Spektrum is primarily known for hosting major events such as the Nobel Peace Prize Concert, Eurovision Song Contest, and concerts by artists of national and international fame, such as Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Diana Ross, Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Janet Jackson, Christina Aguilera, Lady Gaga, Muse, Rammstein, a-ha, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Snoop Dogg and Chris Brown.^[1][2]

History

Oslo Spektrum was part of a large-scale redevelopment of the formerly industrial Grønland/Vaterland area. It was designed by LPO Arkitektkontor AS, and its exterior walls were decorated with ceramic tiles containing fragments of prints by the artist Rolf Nesch. Since this artist died in 1975, permission was obtained from his living relatives, and the decorating was supervised by painter Guttorm Guttormsgaard and ceramic artist Søren Ubisch. In 2004 Oslo Spektrum was awarded the Oslo City Council's award for outstanding architectural achievement.

At the time of opening it was Norway's largest indoor arena, with a capacity of 9,700 at concerts and 6,500 during sporting events). It has since been expanded several times. In Greater Oslo both Vallhall Arena (capacity 13,000 for concerts/4,000 for sporting events) and Telenor Arena (capacity 25,000/15,000) provide larger venues. Oslo Spektrum was conceived as a multi-purpose arena although it was intended primarily for ice hockey. In this capacity it was intended as the home of both Vålerenga Ishockey and Furuset Ishockey, but this did not work out as expected and the venue was soon left to rely on other means of generating revenue.

Location

One of Oslo Spektrum's prime attributes is its location in the middle of Downtown Oslo, next to the Central Station, long and medium haul bus terminal, Jernbanetorget public transportation hub and only a short distance from international ferry terminals. This makes it easily accessible and minimizes traffic problems when crowds arrive at events and disperse afterwards, which has been an issue with other venues such as the more remotely located Telenor Arena.

Oslo Spektrum (left, next to the Oslo Plaza tower building)

Oslo Spektrum seen from Sonja Henies plass

Events

Oslo Spektrum was designed to accommodate various types of entertainment shows and sporting events. It has built-in ice making facilities, and while it is rarely used for ice hockey, it regularly hosts ice shows like Walt Disney's World on Ice. It also hosts the Norwegian Handball Championships, for a period becoming Norway's largest handball arena. Other notable events that are regularly held here include the Nobel Peace Prize Concert, Norwegian Idol finals, Spellemannsprisen (Norwegian music awards), and the Oslo Horse Show. Currently, Spektrum hosts a total of 100 events annually, with some 400.000 visitors. Of these, 70% are concerts by major national and international artists, 10% are other types of entertainment shows, 13% are fairs, conferences and corporate events, and only 3% are sporting events.

References

External links

• Official website